Snow Day Activities For You and Your Kids

Kids wait year round for buckets of snowfall to determine their fate and become their most anticipated day of the winter season - the Snow Day! A day off of school is a child’s greatest dream, but for parents, it’s a day to break out fun snow day activities.

Make use of the snow.

Put the little ones to work with a shovel and have them clear off your sidewalks and driveways. Spread your holiday spirit by helping shovel off your neighbors driveways as well. They’ll be especially grateful and you’ll teach your children about the season of giving.

Make a snowman.

It isn’t a snow day without a snowman. Grab your favorite hat, mittens, scarf, and don’t forget the carrot to create a snowman with your kiddos!

Spread your wings and fly.

Have some fun in the snow by making snow angels and snow forts. They are a great way to spend some family time in the snow.

Make your favorite holiday cookies.  

Once your toes are too chilly for the great outdoors, cozy up inside by making some of your favorite cookies.

Make your own snowflakes.

Cozy up by the fire with some hot cocoa and marshmallows while making paper snowflakes. Click here for some fun, unique snowflake templates to give your children a challenge!

Have an indoor picnic.

Throw together an indoor picnic with your kids. Spend lunch with good food and good company snuggled up together. Make finger foods and have your children help with the preparation.

Play your favorite board games.

Break out Life, Monopoly, and other fan favorites! With homework out of the question, spend some time playing your favorite board games.

Paint the snow.

Now that you and your children are all nice and toasty, send them back outside with a squirt bottle full of water and food coloring to paint a masterpiece in the snow. You can make this fun by creating a big canvas for each kid to design. This is a fun way to put their creativity to the test.

Snow days don’t have to be spent cooped up inside watching a movie. Spend the day inside and out with these crazy fun snow day activities.

Fundraising During the Holidays

The time of year is here that provides many smiles, laughter, and fun. The holiday season is the perfect time to get your organization together to do some fundraising, and Paragon Promotions has the perfect holiday gift catalogue for you!

According to Charity Navigator, charities receive most of their donations in the last few weeks of the year - 30% in December alone - which is why the holidays are the perfect time to fundraise. Our catalogues offer a variety of different gifts that would be perfect for each member of the family.  Here are just a few of our greatest items:

• For Men - From insulated coolers and can handles to tasty eats and treats, our holiday catalogues are chock-full of unique gift ideas for the fellas.

• For Women - Looking for a gift for a woman can be difficult because many women seem to already have everything! Our holiday catalogue offers many unique gifts for women including decadent desserts, kitchen gadgets and handy tote bags.

• For Kids - Paragon Promotions is a great source for fun, creative gifts for kids that are outside the box. Your fundraising patrons will find a creative gift for the little ones that they will be talking about well into the new year.   

• For Holiday Gatherings - Holiday gatherings with friends and family are coming up, and delicious snacks are a staple to the season. Our catalogue offers a variety of delicious snacks for holiday company and all the kitchen utensils you could imagine to complement them. 

Paragon Promotions is here to help you be successful in your holiday fundraising. Still need some convincing? Check out all of our holiday catalogue items online. The holidays is a perfect time to finish up you end of season fundraising events, and we’ve got the tools to get you going. For more information on a holiday fundraising campaign, visit our website.

Pumpkin Recipes for Every Kid to Enjoy This Autumn

When it comes to food, there’s nothing more autumnal than pumpkin-flavored everything. While pumpkin pie is given the most attention at the dinner table, there are endless ways to enjoy this rich and creamy food. Mix it with spices, blend it with cream, or incorporate it with other fall harvest staples. On top of how delicious it is, pumpkin is an incredible superfood to add to your family’s diet.

Pumpkins are incredibly rich in vital antioxidants, vitamins, and nutrients. A single cup of pumpkin contains over 200 percent of a person’s recommended daily intake of Vitamin A, which not only helps to keep your vision in tip-top shape, it also boosts your body’s immunity to help fight infection and viruses. The strong source of fiber in pumpkin will keep your family full longer on fewer calories. There’s also plenty of potassium found in pumpkin which will help restore the body’s balance of electrolytes. This means if you add a little pumpkin to your post-workout or post-playtime diet, it will help restore your muscles and keep them functioning to the best of their ability. This seasonal squash also boasts the antioxidant beta-carotene, which plays a role in cancer prevention, as well as keeping skin wrinkle-free and radiant.

For Meals

Rich and savory, pumpkin packs a lot of complex flavors to be enjoyed in any array of meals. You can find canned pumpkin in most stores, or you can make it at home with this wonderful pumpkin puree recipe. And if you really want to incorporate every last part of the pumpkin, hollow and wipe clean a pumpkin gourd, and use it to serve any of the recipes below for a special autumn touch:

Pumpkin Mac-n-Cheese

Pumpkin Soup

Healthy Pumpkin Chicken Bites and Cheesy Pumpkin Polenta Fries

Pumpkin Chili

Pumpkin Pie Quinoa Breakfast Casserole

For Snacks                   

Pumpkin seeds- baked and seasoned- make for one of the simplest, healthiest, and most delicious snacks around. Try a few of these recipes for awe-inducing snacks that are most definitely kid-friendly:

Lightened-Up Pumpkin Dip for Fruit and Crackers

Pumpkin Gingerbread

Pumpkin Praline Soft Pretzels

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

Pumpkin No-Bake Energy Bites

For Desserts

Savory and simple works for many delicious meals, but sometimes you just want something sweet to snack on. Pumpkin pie, watch out- you be may be dethroned as the reigning king of fall desserts.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

Pumpkin Ice Cream

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Iced Pumpkin Cookies

Pumpkin Carrot Swirl Bars

Pumpkin is ultimately a low calorie, low fat, fibrous, and multi-nutritional item to use in your dishes this fall. It’s delicious, complex, and fully satisfying. Have your little ones help you cook and bake using kid-friendly pumpkin recipes this season.

Celebrate and Educate Your Kids on Labor Day

You celebrate with trips to the lake, the last barbecues of the season, or family road trips, but do your kids know who you are honoring when you celebrate Labor Day? Share these facts with your kids to teach them the importance of working people and how to honor them year round.

Labor Day is an important holiday celebrating America’s hardest workers and the social and economic achievements they have contributed to our country. It honors the everyday working man. Our country wouldn’t thrive without the strength, perseverance, and dedication of hard workers every day.

Here are some quick facts to share with your young ones:

·         Labor Day was first proposed in 1882.

·         It became an official national holiday in 1894.

·         It’s celebrated on the first Monday of September.

·         In the 1800s, it was common for Americans to work 12-hour days, 7 days a week.

·         Children as young as 5 and 6 worked in factories and coal mines back then, too!

·         Labor Day was established by President Grover Cleveland.

·         The first Labor Day parade was in New York City.

·         Over 160 million individuals are employed in America.

People often mistakenly lump Labor Day with Memorial Day, which honors Americans who have died serving in our country’s armed forces. To help your kids really understand why we celebrate Labor Day, engage in these activities and games:  

·         Take your kids to work with you to expose them to various types of work and jobs. Let them talk to your coworkers and explain how each person contributes to the group.

·         Make a list of how your kids can engage in a work environment. Babysitting, mowing lawns, shoveling snow, washing cars, running errands for neighbors, and tutoring are all great ways to get started.

·         Visit a bookshop or library and read books about jobs and careers together.

·         Make a job collage and help your kids find more details on each job.

·         Create a piggy bank to help discuss the importance of earning and saving money.

·         Career Coloring Pages

·         Labor Day Quiz

No matter how you chose to spend Labor Day weekend with your family, make sure to honor the workers who have made our country what it is today.

Back-to-School Morning Routine Tips

*Beep beep beep* goes your alarm, and the chaos begins. Walk the dog, get ready for work, wake the kids up, get them dressed for school, fold the laundry, organize the backpacks, make the kids breakfast, (make yourself breakfast) out the door, off to school. Whew, a parent’s morning is stressful. Wouldn’t it be nice if the mornings were less chaotic? Here are some tips on how to make your morning routine a lot easier.

Organize Backpacks the Night Before

To save time, gather school supplies the night before and organize them in your child’s backpack. This will ensure that there will be no missing items and you will not have to spend your morning searching for lost supplies.

Turn On the Tunes

Listening to upbeat high-energy music in the morning will get you motivated and will get your children moving as well. Listen to music in the bathroom when getting ready and even dance around. This will add excitement and fun to your morning routine.

Provide Incentives

Motivate your children to wake up and get moving by offering small incentives that will be given throughout the morning- maybe a special cereal or breakfast food. You can even offer them a surprise treat in their lunch box.

Hair and Outfits

Picking out outfits the night before will save you lots of time. There will be no digging through closets or hurrying to find matching socks. Your child’s outfits will be prepared and ready to put on right as they wake up. If you have a little girl, consider doing her hair the night before as well. (There are a ton of quick hairstyle ideas on Pinterest.)

Create a Checklist

Create a morning to-do checklist for your children. Delegate different jobs to each and award them if they complete their checklist. This will keep them on track and will save you some time and energy as well.

Make Breakfast Easy

Make quick and easy breakfast meals that can be eaten on the run. If you plan ahead, you can prepare some of these the night before, too. Discover some healthy and quick breakfast meals here.

So make your mornings less stressful by following the tips above. Also, make sure to follow Paragon Promotions on Twitter and Facebook. Stay updated on our 2015 Fall Prize Program: Here Come the Minions! Have a wonderful and organized school year!

Summer Swimming Safety Tips

When it comes to summer activities, swimming is on the top of the list for many children. Kids flock to local swimming pools, beaches, and lakes looking to soak up the sun and have a little fun in the water. As parents, this means it is very important for us to teach our children safe swimming practices. Here are 5 swimming safety tips to ensure that your child is safe while swimming this summer.

Diving

Typically it is considered unsafe to dive into less than 8 feet of water, but that does not stop some kids from jumping into the shallow end. Many jump head first into the water, not knowing their surroundings or the distance to the bottom of the pool. It is important to teach your children not only when and when not to dive, but also how to dive properly.

Sunburn

Many believe that if they are under the water they are unlikely to be sunburnt. That is simply not the case. In fact, the sun’s rays can be strengthened by 50 percent due to the reflection of the water. This can cause serious sunburn if your child is not protected. Always make sure they are wearing waterproof sunscreen while enjoying the water.

Flotation Devices

Flotation devices are very popular in the water. There is a wide variety to choose from, including water wings, noodles, and inflatable rings. While these devices are popular, it is important to understand that they cannot be relied on. They may do the job, but it is still important to have adult supervision when using them, as they can deflate or slide out of a child's slippery grip. The safest swimming devices to use are the U.S. Coast Guard’s regulated swimming aids, which are tested and proven to be safe.

Running

One of the first things every child should know before going to a local pool is to not run around the edges. Many injuries, accidents, and even deaths have occurred due to a child running on the outside of a pool. Always make sure they are taught to walk and look out for wet areas.

Supervision

While most lakes, beaches, and pools have certified lifeguards near them, it is always important to go into the water or stay near the water with younger children, even if they have flotation devices on. Accidents do occur so be careful and assist your child when needed.

When practiced safely, swimming is one of the best activities your children can do during the summer months, just make sure they know the swimming safety tips from above before they enter into the water. So get out and enjoy the sun and the water with your family. Safe swimming everyone!

Summer Science Experiments For Kids

As parents, we want our children to continue learning during the summer months, although finding fun summer activities that are educational can be difficult. Here are some super cool science experiments that will fascinate and educate your child this summer.

1. Guess the amount: For this experiment, all you need is a handful of paper clips and a glass of water. First, you fill the cup with water, then you have your child guess how many paper clips it will take to make the water overflow. This experiment demonstrates surface tension, which is when the water bulges on top of the glass without overflowing.

2. Chalk Rockets: In this experiment you will be creating exploding chalk rockets. (It isn’t as dangerous as it sounds.) You first must create liquid sidewalk chalk and put it in film canisters. Then you drop alka-seltzer tablets into the canister, which creates a chemical reaction, propelling the film canister towards the sky. Your children will love this, and it teaches them about chemical reactions and propulsion!

3. Bubble Shapes: This next experiment will teach your child how and why bubbles always form a circle. What you will do is make different 2D shapes out of pipe cleaners (Squares, triangles, etc.) You then dip them into the soap, and blow a bubble. Your child will see that no matter what the shape is the bubble will always turn round.

4. Clouds in a Jar: For this one you will need shaving cream, water, clear cups, and blue food coloring. This experiment will make the effect of a rain cloud in a jar. You first fill the glass with water, then you put the shaving cream on top of the water which will resemble a cloud. Then you drop the blue food coloring on top of the shaving cream, and it will create a rain-like effect in the water. This is a perfect experiment to do on a rainy day!

5. Pencil and Baggie: This experiment brings some magic and wonder to science. All you will need is a plastic baggie, some water, and a sharp pencil. What you will do is fill the baggie ¾ of the way with water. You then stick the pencil through the baggie, and watch in amazement. No water should spill from the baggie. This teaches your child about the molecules and polymers that make up the baggie.

These experiments are sure to keep your child busy and get them learning about science throughout the summer months. In the mean time check out our website to learn more about our Fall 2015 prize program: Here Come the Minions! We are looking forward to working with you when the school year begins!